should i let my chickens die naturally?

[crazy_chicken99]

hi!

since chickens would not lay that much eggs if they would be in the natural habitat is it moraly right to let them die because egg laying problem... 300 eggs a year is too much and it doesnt seem like it is fair to let them suffer from liver damage egg peritrosis etc.
what do you think?

 

[Quaicken108]

Sorry, do you have a hen who is suffering? I would keep mine and let them pass naturally if nothing is going wrong and they’re just old. If there’s nothing you can do like one of my girls last year had an injury that I couldn’t do anything for and the best solution is humane euthanasia but if they’re just not laying and have a will to live than leave them be.

 

[Araucana Nest]

Welcome to Backyard Chickens

it’s a huge moral dilemma but they are here. Chickens hatch everyday for super layers that will lay 300 eggs a year. People in countries worldwide demand eggs. They are a great source of protein.

is it morally right? I don’t think “natural” animals should be bred to be super producers. No. I don’t believe we should be creating monkey- human hybrids for organ transplants or goats with epilepsy so people can have a laugh and get a tender cut of flesh.

It’s a huge tragedy few people think about. It’s also a huge movement that is probably impossible to stop. diminished land, resources and increasing population will increase the likelihood of more “unnatural” breedings of animals to create more moral fissures in our fabric of compassion and kindness. What I do is that I remove myself from that equation. I’m vegetarian and don’t breed for any of the popular ethically ruinous trends like dwarfism and epilepsy. You can protect your heart by not participating in these trends, opening your quarantined spaces to take in suffering animals when they present themselves and spreading kindness wherever you go.

 

[Chicalina]

I don't think you can argue that we shouldn't eat plants OR meat. There's nothing left!

On the OPS question, I couldn't let an animal suffer if I could humanely euthanise it. And I no longer keep hybrid chickens that are bred to lay and lay and burn out quickly and with painful egg related issues, for that very reason.

I don't judge anyone who eats meat, or who is vegan or anything inbetween. It is a personal choice.

I do however judge people who hunt any animal just for sport. And those who overbreed dogs in puppy farms, and anyone who is cruel to animals.

 

[RoosterML]

As an owner it’s your responsibility to put that animal down if suffering or take to a vet. The natural life of chickens ended thousands of years ago.

 

[Vacman]

Wow! I probably shouldn't comment here because this thread is going way beyond where I think it should. Through animal management, humane treatment, and the growth of planting crops for personal use, I think we're doing the right things. More interest in organic farming is a good thing for all of us. Can throwing an apple core in the compost pile or even the garbage be seen as hurting the plant's ability to reproduce? I hardly think so. We bought our chickens for the ability to get fresh organic eggs and we provide our chickens a comfortable existence. Will I let them survived even if they are beyond the laying stage? Yes, but that's a personal thing and the reason I couldn't raise animals for meat. With us, they become pets ad we treat our pets well. However, I realize that if everyone felt that way, we wouldn't have steak on the grill so I respect all of those who can raise cattle and meat birds. I don't consider them any less moral than us.

 

[CluckerFamily]

All my chickens will live as long of a life as they can whether they are laying eggs once a week or less than that.
I think it is my responsibility as an animal owner to put an animal down if they are suffering and there is no chance of improving no matter how heartbroken I would be.

 

[Tre3hugger]

Welcome to Backyard Chickens

it’s a huge moral dilemma but they are here. Chickens hatch everyday for super layers that will lay 300 eggs a year. People in countries worldwide demand eggs. They are a great source of protein.

is it morally right? I don’t think “natural” animals should be bred to be super producers. No. I don’t believe we should be creating monkey- human hybrids for organ transplants or goats with epilepsy so people can have a laugh and get a tender cut of flesh.

It’s a huge tragedy few people think about. It’s also a huge movement that is probably impossible to stop. diminished land, resources and increasing population will increase the likelihood of more “unnatural” breedings of animals to create more moral fissures in our fabric of compassion and kindness. What I do is that I remove myself from that equation. I’m vegetarian and don’t breed for any of the popular ethically ruinous trends like dwarfism and epilepsy. You can protect your heart by not participating in these trends, opening your quarantined spaces to take in suffering animals when they present themselves and spreading kindness wherever you go.

Hi. I basically agree with you. However, I was wondering. As a vegetarian, why is your line drawn at animals? Plants are genetically modified and grown in ways that really hurt the environment just like factory farmed animals. Plants have been proven to react to stimuli, and form symbiotic complex relationships with animals and other plants. Why is it totally fine to eat a Monsanto tomato, but not a cornish x or an egg? Or why do most people not think twice when they rip an apple from their mother tree and tear it's flesh with their teeth? Or dice an heirloom carrot into 100 pieces? I get really hung up on this. Because plants don't have a nervous system YOU can recognize they are morally free of guilt to eat? Or they don't make noise when you pick/kill them? Either way for one to eat something has to sacrifice its life. That is just the way it is. Whether it is a Waygu or a soy bean. Why is it acceptable to kill plants not animals?

 

[theoldchick]

Humane euthanasia.

 

[Chookchicken]

Why do most people not think twice when they rip an apple from their mother tree and tear it's flesh with their teeth?

Eating the fruits off the plant doesn’t hurt the plant, after all it’s delicious because it wants animals to come eat it so they can spread it’s seeds. I don’t know about vegetables though.